The present invention was first described in Disclosure Document No. 468,501, filed on Feb. 07, 2000. There are no previously filed, nor currently any co-pending applications, anywhere in the world.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to special receptacles for holding a tape and the like and, more particularly, to a tape recorder aesthetically concealed within an creature-shaped child""s toy.
2. Description of the Related Art
The toy industry is a multibillion dollar, global industry that is continually growing as more and more products are developed and introduced to the buying public. The toy industry is somewhat unique in the sense that it is highly susceptible to trendy products or fads. This is due most likely to the fact that children fall easily to peer pressure and, as a result, when a toy product achieves a certain level of popularity among children, demand can skyrocket in a domino effect manner. Items that are otherwise conventional dolls that have achieved enormous, even record, popularity based primarily on their attractiveness to children.
Accordingly, there is a constant need for new children""s toys.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention; however, the following references were considered related.
The following patents disclose a combined functional toy and cassette holder: U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,375 issued in the name of Mattikow; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,017,905 issued in the name of Convertine et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,786 issued in the name of McCormick describes a continuous play musical mobile.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,764 issued in the name of Bailey discloses a soft sculpture character having storage pockets and a tape recorder.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,474,484 issued in the name of Lemelle describes a doll that plays a recorded tape.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,257 issued in the name of Spector discloses a toy figure and headset assembly with a portable audio tape cassette player.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,061 issued in the name of Hsieh describes a portable miniature high fidelity stereo tape player.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,010 issued in the name of Gross et al. discloses a baby rocker apparatus with a tape recorder.
Consequently, a need has been felt for providing additional novel designs with new functionality not seen in the prior art.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a tape recorder aesthetically concealed within a child""s toy.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a tape recorder having a microphone remote mounted from a tape recorder, both aesthetically concealed within a child""s toy.
Briefly described according to one embodiment of the present invention, is a pull along toy for a child is provided with an integral cassette recorder. The invention will take the shape of an animal such as a dog, a cat, a lion or the like, or other type of walking or crawling creature, such as a bug or the like. A cassette recorder would be built into the back of the animal and provide common functions such as play, record, fast-forward, rewind and stop. An integral speaker is provided with a volume control. The leash of the animal is formed by a strong electrical cable exiting from the neck area of the animal. Located at the end of the leash/cable is a microphone, for use in recording audio content. When not in use, the microphone is stored in a snap-in compartment on the chest area of the animal.
Thus, a child may pull the toy by the leash and/or sing or talk into the microphone.